International symposium on food safety and control: FAO Director-General underscores the importance of nuclear technologies for measuring, managing and controlling food safety
QU Dongyu, Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), has stressed the need to control food safety from the start – from our soil, water, agricultural and post-harvest practices – underscoring the crucial role that nuclear technologies can play in setting science-based food standards.
“Nuclear technologies are very important tools for measuring, managing, and controlling food safety, and are complimentary to the One Health approach,” Qu said, with food safety and food supply being “fundamental for agrifood systems transformation”.
He made the remarks in a video message for the opening of Vienna’s “International Symposium on Food Safety and Control” today. The event is organised by FAO and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) through the Joint FAO/IAEA Centre of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture.
In his message, the FAO Director-General noted how the centre was founded in 1964 to advance global food security and sustainable agricultural development by safely and appropriately applying nuclear science and technologies. “This visionary collaboration and our shared research laboratories are unique in the UN System,” he said.
He further emphasised the urgency and relevance of the joint efforts: “The consequences of food and energy price spikes, natural and man-made disasters, the climate crisis, as well as ongoing conflicts, are significantly affecting food availability, accessibility and affordability globally.”
Under the theme “Safe Food for a Better Life” the Symposium (27-31 May 2024) aims to highlight the significant role of nuclear techniques in enhancing food safety and agricultural productivity and facilitate information exchange among researchers, officials, and other key partners from developed and developing countries.
Nuclear technologies offer competitive and often unique solutions to combat hunger, reduce malnutrition, enhance environmental sustainability and ensure food safety and authenticity. FAO and the IAEA have a strategic partnership to help member countries use these technologies safely and effectively.